But first she will make a stop in New Haven for the Connecticut Open, which she won when it was the New Haven Open in 2012. Kvitova, ranked No. 4 in the world, was the runner-up last year to champion Simona Halep. The tournament runs Aug. 15-23 at the Connecticut Tennis Center.

"New Haven is very close and very friendly, I love to play there," said Kvitova on a conference call Monday from Cincinnati, where she is playing in the Western and Southern Open. "I hope I can continue with good results. It will be a tough tournament. I'm looking forward to it."

In New Haven, Kvitova joins Halep, who moved to No. 2 this week in the WTA rankings, as well as No. 8 Genie Bouchard of Canada and Caroline Wozniacki, a four-time winner in New Haven who is ranked 13th.

Kvitova, 24, lost in the third round of the Rogers Cup in Montreal last week to Ekaterina Makarova, 4-6, 6-1, 2-6. It was her first tournament back since winning Wimbledon.

"I felt good at Montreal," Kvitova said. "I think I played good in the first round. It was a good match [in the third round]. She played very well. I'm focusing on my next tournament."

Kvitova, third-seeded at Cincinnati behind Serena Williams and Halep, will play the winner of Monday's Elina Svitolina-Lauren Davis match in the second round.

Winning Wimbledon for the second time was different, Kvitova said. In 2011, she wasn't expected to win. As a former champion, there was more pressure.

"It was nice to win it for the second time," she said. "It's my favorite one. It was very special to win again. I was in a different position compared to 2011. Nobody expected I could win that [then]. It was more special this year."

Kvitova overpowered Bouchard in the final at Wimbledon, 6-3, 6-0, winning in less than an hour.

"I love to play on the grass," Kvitova said. "I'm not sure what it is. Every time I step onto the court at Wimbledon, I feel like I'm at home."

Following the victory, Kvitova took 10 days off from tennis, then resumed, practicing on hard courts to get ready for the upcoming tournaments.

In 2011, when Kvitova won at Wimbledon, she lost in the first round at the U.S. Open.. But she was only 21 years old and learning how to deal with everything that went along with winning a Grand Slam. Now she is older, more experienced and is looking for more success at the Open, where she has only advanced to the round of 16 twice (once in 2009 and again in 2012, after she won at New Haven).